Silliman University Church Reflections

I learned to ride bicycles as a boy. We lived near the Burnham lake where bicycles were rented. At first, it was difficult to strike a balance with two wheels. But friends taught me to paddle, to be able to balance. And I did. But weaving into a crowd of cyclists is another matter. The more I tried to avoid oncoming cyclists, the more I tended to slam into them. My eyes would focus on the face of the cyclist, and slam…After several scrapes in the knee, elbows and busted lips, I found the solution. When a cyclist approaches I switch my focus further ahead and on the bigger picture. It works, I never bumped anyone again. The secret is not to stare at what you don’t want to hit. But look farther ahead and it is smooth cycling.

Perspective is important. When we focus on small things, we lose perspective. When we focus on the big picture, we see things properly. Focusing ahead enables us to maneuver around obstacles.

So this morning, let me talk about perspective. If we are focused on our fears, we will likely crash on to them. But if we focus further ahead, we will likely avoid crashing.

Our journey as United Church of Christ in the Philippines , cannot be made without faith and without perspective. It was faith that built the Evangelical Union in 1901. The Evangelical Union was the coming together of American missionaries – Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Methodists, United Brethren, Baptists, Disciples, Episcopalians and many others. They came together because of the big picture. Most Filipinos were Catholics needing Reformation, proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we are saved by grace through faith, not by works. If each of the missionary groups, went on their own, they would be concentrating themselves in certain areas and leaving other areas unattended. They would be competing with each other. They would have to mobilize greater resources to build churches, hospitals, seminaries.

The missionaries decided to band together in the Evangelical Union, to share scarce resources, assign mission responsibilities covering the country, and eventually to establish one evangelical church. This quickly enabled the growth of Protestant faith in the country.

And so, even though Silliman Institute was built by Hibbard who was a Presbyterian, it would be Frank Woodward and Frank Laubach Congregationalists, Elmer Higdon of the Disciples, Clayton Witmer of the United Brethren, who would soon bring in their gifts to make Silliman what it is today.

In 1929, four churches – Presbyterians of the Visayas, Congregationalists of Mindanao, United Brethren Ilocos and United Church in Manila merged to become the United Evangelical Church partly realizing the vision of EU. In 1943, the evangelicals in the Japanese army forced the establishment of the Evangelical Church in the Phil. In May 25, 1948, the 1929 merger, the 1943 merger, the Phil. Methodist Church and others came together to form the UCCP.

Our church is the fruit of the spirit of unity, in the effort to be an effective witness to Christ to a nominally Christian society. Our ancestors came together, from Visayas, Ilocos, Mindanao, not certain sometimes fearful about differences in forms of worship, sacraments, polity, theology, that made coming together difficult. But we are sure that in Christ, we are united, and we are called to discover, part by part, with patience and tolerance, the areas of our oneness. Even our present difficulty in confirming pastors is a unique struggle between the Presbyterian and Congregationalist polities. Presbyterians give more weight of authority on the Council. Congregationalists give weight to the authority of the congregational meeting. But UCCP is a unity movement that requires extraordinary faith, love, hope, and patience. In fact, one of the main lectures during the UCCP founding assembly delivered by Bp. Cipriano Navarro was “Patience a Prerequisite”

The Methodists took a long time to join and then only a section of them did– the PMC. They were afraid of cutting off the umbilical cord from the mother church. But we learned to move on in faith and unity, confident that our fears will be found to be baseless and that if there will be difficulties, the Holy Spirit and the love in our hearts would sort it out for us. We would never be 60 if not for that faith and confidence in HS. Neither can we move a single step forward without faith. For 60 years, we lived in faith guided by Prov. 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him. And he will make your paths straight.”

How did we do it? By faith. 1^st principle – Focus on the big picture of God. We are not worriers. There is always something to worry about. Are our seminaries preparing pastors well? Are our leaders honest? Can we trust others? Can we live with brothers and sisters, who sing different hymns from us and who use ? instruments? It is easy to focus on our differences or on the weaknesses of others of which there are many, but let us not forget that God is infinitely larger than our preferences, and infinitely wiser than our ways.

2^nd principle is – Focus on what is unseen, rather than what is seen. If we had looked for financial security first, we would have remained like the Methodists, receiving subsidies from our mother churches. But the Unseen God is our security. What is seen is often the fantasy. What is unseen is the powerful reality. Our ancestors were filled with the Spirit in building churches on their own, by the power of the unseen Christ who prayed in J17 – I pray for those who will believe in me, so that they may all be one.“ God is invisible but our hearts are open to Him. The unseen is the reality. What is seen is an illusion or only a small part of reality. The unseen reality is seen by vision of faith. I will  pour out my spirit on all, sons and daughters shall prophesy, youth will see visions and the old persons will dream dreams.” (Acts 2:17)

2 Cor. 4:16-18 explains why unseen is more important than what is seen. “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes, not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.

3^rd principle is focus on God who is in control, not on our inability to control. Understand that God has a plan even for our differences. God is carefully working it out. He is in control, when we allow ourselves to be used for God’s purpose, not when we control God.

For us, things do not happen by accident. They happen on purpose. Nothing catches God off-guard. Nothing surprises him. He is carefully and with great skill, weaving our differences together into his plan. Rom 8:38 “We know all things work together for good to them that love God to them who are called according to his purpose. Even when we cannot see how our difficulties could be a part of God’s plan, we believe that it is. We hold onto that faith.

Can we trust that God loves us and knows what he is doing even though we may be confused? Can we walk in faith, not in fear. The perspective of UCCP is unity in the unseen Christ, a perspective of faith. This perspective will get us into friction with others. But let us remember that it is through friction that a gem is polished. Faith will bring us fire that may become too hot at times. Let us remember it is through the intense fire that the finest metal is molded. Let us persevere and push through the present task until we come through on the other side… walking by faith, each day, discovering our oneness with Christ in joy. And that is our perspective. Unity is the reality of our faith. Division is an illusion.

(Sermon delivered 25 May 08, Silliman Church)

I Love Children’s Prayers, I know you do too. Samples:

Dear God: Please send a new baby for Mommy. The new baby you sent last week cries too much. - Girl, 7 years
Dear God: I really need a raise in my allowance. Could you have one of your angels tell my father. Thank you. Boy 7

Children’s prayers are endearing because of their honesty.
One of the great paradoxes of the Christian faith is that God probably knows everything that is going on in our lives, yet God enjoys listening to our prayers and sometimes responding to them. Jesus prayed and taught us to pray. The need for prayer is axiomatic to being human. It is as inevitable as God’s power is incomprehensible.
Why do we pray? We pray because we have a dark side, monsters waiting to dominate us if we do not seek God’s help in prayer. Prayer is a God-appointed way to resist that side. (Eph. 6:12-13, 18). Lord let me be humble today. Let me be giving. Help me to be content. You know what I mean.

We pray because it is God’s way for us to obtain what we need (Lk. 11:13) Ask and you shall receive.

We need to pray with thanksgiving because it is God’s way for us to obtain freedom from anxiety and to receive “the peace of God”(Phil.4:6-7).
God wants us to talk as children. For are we not children before the all-knowing, all-powerful God? Imagine how we stack up against a God of the universe! Yes, God is all-knowing, but God also desires our fellowship. When we seek God in prayer, our bond with God is strengthened. That’s a good enough reason to pray.
We all have different reasons to pray. Today we will look at two of Jesus’ prayers. The first shows us how Jesus prayed. The second will illustrate how he wants us to pray.

There are two very famous prayers in scripture given by Jesus. The most famous, The Lord’s Prayer, begins with “Pray in this way…indicating Jesus’ was teaching as usual, little things. Perhaps you have heard of the acronym ACTS — A-adoration, C-confession, T-thanksgiving, S-supplication.
…Our Father who art in heaven, Holy is your name. Adoration & Praise
…Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. …supplication
….forgive our sins as we forgive those who sin against us…Confession
…Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil…Supplication
…for Thine is the kingdom and the power and glory forever and ever. Amen. Thanksgiving and Adoration. Jesus was teaching his disciples how to pray.
The other famous prayer is found in John 17. A very interesting prayer. “I am not praying for the whole world, but for the ones you have given me.
Jesus is in the upper room with His disciples. He has shared the Passover meal with them – and now he is about to begin his exit from the world. And what does he do. He prays. What does Jesus pray for? 1. He prays for the task that God has given Him to do. He is about to die, and the cup is bitter, he prays for courage. 2. He prays for his disciples. The growth of the church will depend on their faithfulness to the task he had given them. (v. 9-19). 3. He prays for those who have not yet heard the gospel – I pray for those who will believe in me so that they may all be one, as you Father are in me and I in you. (v 20-21) There is a pattern here for us:
1. Pray for the task that God has given us…here’s a good example.
Lord… make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hate, let me sow love;
where there is injury, let me pardon;
where there is doubt, let me show faith;
where there is despair, let me give hope;
where there is darkness, let me give light;
where there is sadness, let me bring joy;
Lord…grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. St. Francis
2. Pray for those God has allowed us to touch. Those who sit next to you. Lord, make us truly be like brothers and sisters. Seeking out and caring for each other. Help us to be sensitive to their pains. Dear Jesus, help me to spread Thy fragrance everywhere I go. Flood my soul with Thy spirit and love. Penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly, that all my life may only be a radiance of Thine. Shine through me and be so in me that every soul I come in contact with may feel Thy presence in my soul. Let them look up and see no longer me …but only Jesus. Stay with me and then I shall begin to shine as you shine, so as to be a light to others. Mother Theresa
3. Pray for those who will come - those who will believe because of us. O may all who come behind us find us faithful. May the fire of our devotion light their way. May the footprints that we leave, lead them to believe. And the lives we live inspire them to obey.
Notice how Jesus cared for little things, for individuals, here and now. For little people, children, lepers, prostitutes, the blind. He prayed for a few disciples, not the whole world. There is a kind of simplicity to great prayer. There is honesty in it. Because the greatness of God is in being little. His prayer is for this hour, this person, this church. We too need to pray for one another.

Let us pray…Loving and Eternal God we pray for commitment to our tasks, a stronger bond of fellowship, and bless those who will believe because of us. Amen.

Sertmon delivered Mat 4, 2008, Silliman University church